Author Archive

Carolyn and Latanya Dance	Mar Stevens	Denis Solis ~ Las Bomberas

Samba at Drum Sundays ~ with Michaelle Goerlitz

We’ll be focusing on samba de roda, which includes congas and drums played with sticks. Bring a conga, and/or tamborim, agogo bell or pandeiro - all other hand drums welcome!

We meet at Laurel Jujitsu, 4148 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, CA (map)

Cost is $25 – $10 (sliding scale);
Under 12 free;
No one turned away for lack of funds

Class is open to ALL LEVELS.

There will be a limited number of drums to borrow on a first come first serve basis.

About Michaelle Goerlitz

Michaelle Goerlitz

Known for her versatility, Michaelle was a founding member of Wild Mango. She has played, recorded and toured with a variety of artists including the VNote Ensemble, Mark Levine, Soul Sauce, the Pickpocket Ensemble, rhiannon, Wayne Wallace, Val Pettiford, Jami Sieber, Barbara Higbie, Samba Rio and Tammy Hall. In 2007 she was named a rising star under the percussion category in Downbeat magazine.

Join us again for the last program in this series: on July 7, with Lali Meija.

We’re in planning for the next series.

Playing Drums!	Drums!	Debbie Fier

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Linda Tillery

Linda Tillery is a veteran drummer, vocalist, producer, and cultural historian whose career has spanned 34 years. Since the 1960′s, Tillery has been regarded as one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most versatile singers.

In the 90′s Linda took command of an even broader repertoire, tapping into the diverse resources of African American roots music. She shares with us the historic beginnings of Black music through Work Songs, Spirituals, Play Songs, Field Hollers, Moans and Ring Shouts.

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Carolyn Brandy

Carolyn Brandy has been drumming for over 40 years. She has been instrumental in bringing women to the spirit and healing of the Drum. Carolyn is the Artistic Director of Women Drummers International and co-creator of the Born to Drum Women’s Drum Camp. She was also the founder of the Bay Area’s favorite marching band, Sistah Boom in 1981. In 1976, Carolyn co-founded the popular band, Alive! that toured the nation for almost Women Drummers International10 years and has 4 recordings to its credit. She has worked in the SF Bay area for many years as a composer, performer, teacher and cultural worker

Carolyn is an expert in the folkloric drumming styles found throughout the island of Cuba. She has been a practitioner of the Yoruba-based Cuban religion, Regla de Ocha, also known as Santeria, since 1977. She was initiated as a priest of the religion in Havana, Cuba by Amelia Pedroso in 2000.

Carolyn has led five successful cultural tours to the Island of Cuba to study Folkloric music. She has organized workshops in Havana, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Camaguey, Santiago De Cuba, and Guantanamo, where the groups studied with masters of Afro-Cuban drumming and dance.

Carolyn has recently produced an instructional DVD series called: Step by Step Conga Instruction. More information about her DVD’s, and projects, can be found at: http://www.carolynbrandy.com

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Documents for Camp

We’ve collected these documents that you can download for your convenience. They are in .pdf format.

BTD 2012 Faculty Roster

Daily Program (Overview of Day’s Events)
Faculty Bios
Class Descriptions
Class Schedule
WCR Site Map 1
Driving Directions to Walker Creek Ranch
Checklist: “What to Bring”
BTD 2012 Evaluation

We’re bringing copies of these documents to camp. But we also suggest that you download and print out a copy to bring to ensure that you have what you need. And of course some of us like to mark them up ahead of time!

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Judy Piazza	Mar Stevens	Sena Kugbega
Bio Class Descriptions	bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions

Las Bomberas De La Bahia	Sheree Seretse	Afia with Shekere
Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions

Tonya Lyles	Carolyn Brandy	Michaelle Goerlitz
Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions

Elizabeth Sayre	Thoz Womenz	Annette A. Aguilar
Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Description: TBA

Susu Pampanin	Sidney Weaverlng	Sue Lundquist
Bio Class Description	Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions

Jeni Swerdlow at Drummm Circle at SF Carnaval	Odilia Galván Rodríguez	Neena McNair, Volunteer Co-Ordinator
Bio Class Descriptions	Bio Class Descriptions

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Marketplace

Marketplace BTD 2011 Photo by Vaschelle André

Many thanks to all our vendors who made the marketplace such fun over the years. The Born to Drum Marketplace has become a central place not only for shopping but for jamming and hanging out together. We’re looking forward to another lively and beautiful marketplace this year.

The marketplace will be available on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, all three days of camp. If you are an artist, craftsperson, or body worker, we hope you’ll join us for one, two, or three days. Of particular interest are percussion instruments, drum bags, soaps, herbal teas, clothes, jewelry, etc. We welcome other visual arts as well as services such as massage and body work.

Details of costs and arrangements are in the application which you can here as a word document BTD 2012 Marketplace App — Word or a .PDF document BTD 2012 Marketplace App – PDF

Please email your application to womendrummers@gmail.com. If you don’t have access to email you can send it to us, along with your check, to

Payment: Payment should be made before camp and preferably by June 20. There are options on the application for staying overnight and for purchasing the wonderful Walker Creek Ranch meals. You will make your selections and compute the amount you owe using the application form. Payment options are by check or by credit card.

To use your credit card, use the PayPal button below and enter the amount you owe. You do not need a PayPal account to use this option. You will be prompted to enter your credit card information. If you do have a PayPal account, you can also pay using the bank account you set up with PayPal. You will receive a receipt from paypal that will show your payment for “born to drum marketplace fees”. Our PayPal email address that shows on the receipt is “drumcamp@borntodrum.org”.

To pay by check, send your check to

We will also acknowledge your payment and if needed contact you with any questions about your application and payment.

This is a women-only event and vendors must be female.

Spaces are outside on the dining room patio, so we recommend a canopy or umbrella. Tables can be provided. Just let us know in your application whether you want to reserve one or more.

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Class Schedule

Please check back here before camp and on the message board at camp in case there are any last minute changes.

Class Descriptions are here

Teacher Bios are here


F R I D A Y	Registration 12:30 - 2:15 Dinner 6:30 - 7:30	Opening Ceremony - outdoors - followed by introduction of faculty and Claudia from Walker Creek Ranch and student concert in Maple, followed by Campfire Jam Session
Locations/Times	Buckeye	The Barn	Museum	Campfire	Muir	Fireside	Bay
2:30 - 4:00	Mar Stevens Djembe Vibrations 1 Beginning	Sheree Seretse Shona Marimba All Levels	Michaelle Goerlitz Stick Control All Levels	Basic Skills: Juicy Grooves Jeni Swerdlow	Elizabeth Sayre Bata Beginning	Sena Kugbega Ghanian Trad. Drum and Dance Beginning	Basic Skills: Djembe Tonya Lyles
4:15 - 5:45	Afia Walking Tree Djembe Fevah Advanced	Las Bomberas Beginning	Carolyn Brandy Fundamentals of Rhythm All Levels	Thoz Womenz 1. The Circle Beginning	*****	Judy Piazza Doumbek & Middle Eastern Rhythms All Levels	Basic Skills: Congas/Djembe Sue Lundquist

SATURDAY	Mealtimes 8:30 - 9:15 Breakfast 1:00 - 1:50 Lunch 6:00 - 7:00 Dinner		7:30 Faculty Concert followed by Campfire Jam Session
Locations/Times	Buckeye	The Barn	Museum	Campfire	Muir	Fireside	Bay
9:30 - 11:00	Mar Stevens Djembe Vibrations 2 All Levels	Sidney Intro to Salsa and Ruedo de Casino	Carolyn Brandy Conga Beginning	Thoz Womenz The Heartbeat Intermediate	*****	Judy Piazza Frame Drum Intro All Levels	Basic Skills: Congas/Djembe Sue Lundquist
11:15 - 12:45	Afia Walking Tree Dunun Orchestra All Levels	Sheree Seretse Shona Marimba All Levels	Michaelle Goerlitz Rio Style Samba Beginning	*****	Basic Skills: Juicy Grooves Jeni Swerdlow	Sena Kugbega Ghanian Trad. Drum and Dance Intermediate 1.	*****
2:00 - 3:30	*****	Las Bomberas Intermediate	Annette Latin Percussion	*****	Judy Piazza Special Workshop: Healing Sound Circle All Levels – 1 HOUR DURATION	Elizabeth Sayre Bata All Levels	Basic Skills: Djembe Tonya Lyles
3:45 - 5:15 Special Activities	Hike, Swim at Turtle Pond, Informal Jams (classrooms or outdoors), hang out, nap, ...	MAESTRA CLASS in Middle Eastern Rhythms and instruments with SUSU PAMPANIN ~ Fireside Room

S U N D A Y	Mealtimes 8:30 - 9:15 Breakfast 1:00 - 1:50 Lunch		4:00 pm Closing outdoors near Maple
Locations/Times	Buckeye	The Barn	Museum	Campfire	Muir	Fireside	Bay
9:30 - 11: 00	Afia Walking Tree Gourd Song Shekeree All Levels	Sheree Seretse Shona Marimba All Levels	Carolyn Brandy Conga Intermediate	*****	*****	Judy Piazza Frame Drum Yoga Intermediata	Basic Skills: Tonya Lyles
11:15 - 12:45	Judy Graboyes Special Workshop on Bongos	Sidney Rueda con Sorpresa	Michaelle Goerlitz Samba Reggae All Levels	*****	Basic Skills: Juicy Grooves Jeni Swerdlow	Sena Kugbega Ghanian Trad. Drum and Dance Intermediate 2.	Basic Skills: Congas/Djembe Sue Lundquist
2:00 - 3:30	Mar Stevens Djembe Vibrations 3 All Levels	Las Bomberas Intermediate 2	Annette Multiple Conga Drum in Latin Percussion	Thoz Womenz The Song and Purpose Advanced	*****	Elizabeth Sayre Bata Intermediate/Advanced	*****

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Raffle

Gourd Drums and Shekeres

We are looking forward to another fun raffle this year. One of our dear friends has donated some wonderful items and more are coming in from our faculty and marketplace vendors. More info soon!!!

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Luisah Teish

Luisah Teish is a WomanChief in the Ifa/Orisha tradition.

She is a priestess of Oshun, the Yoruba Goddess of Love, Art, and Sensuality, and the author of “Jambalaya: The Natural Woman’s Book of Personal Charms and Practical Rituals” a women’s spirituality classic.

She is the Founding Mother of Ile Orunmila Oshun, the School of Ancient Mysteries/Sacred Arts Center, and ASE Theater.

She teaches Ritual Theater, Eco-Mythology, and Women’s Rites of Passage at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, the California Institute of Integral Studies, and other educational institutions around the world.

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Registration

Come join us for an amazing week-end. Tickets are available on site. No need to let us know, just come on down. Information and driving directions are in the Practical Information section.

Tickets are available on site at Walker Creek Ranch. Purchase at camp is by cash or checks only. Credit card purchase is not available at the camp.

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Born to Drum 2011 Photos

Marketplace Jam ~ Photo by Vaschelle André	Sena Kugbega ~ Photo by Vaschelle André
Born to Drum 2011	Drum Maestras Concert 2011

Photos by Vaschell Andrè and Maria Verdan

Come back soon: More photos to come!

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Afia Walking Tree

Afia with Shekere

Afia Walking Tree’s philosophy is that we are all on a journey to re-emerge as whole beings and be in sync with our universes. She uses African Diasporic drumming, singing, dancing, and the honoring of one’s lineages as vehicle to help her clients and participants cultivate new tools and pathways to realize their destinies. Born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica, Afia Walking Tree is a masterful percussionist, visionary facilitator, and outstanding performer, singer-songwriter and recording artist who builds’ bridges across multi-ethnic intergenerational communities. Afia has been a collaborative artist with many luminaries of our time.

In 2007 and 2008, Afia toured with the internationally acclaimed Les Amazones Women Master Drummers of Guinea as one of their lead soloists. January 2009 Afia chaperoned thirty three people on her second Drum and Dance Cultural Immersion Tour to Guinea. There she received initiations for playing Djembe and Dunun for numerous ceremonies, dances, and social celebrations. Afia offers intensive study and consultation for individuals, semi-privates (2-4), and small to large groups at all levels. She also brings her work to schools, non-profits, colleges, universities, and corporations internationally.

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Michaelle Goerlitz

Michaelle Goerlitz has been playing drums and percussion since she was eight years old. After attending college in the Midwest, she moved to San Francisco in 1980 to continue her studies, which have led to exploration of Brazilian, Afro Cuban, Venezuelan, Peruvian and Middle Eastern rhythms (plus American idioms jazz, R & B & funk). She was a founding member of two renowned & long-term projects, the Blazing Redheads and Wild Mango. Both groups blended many different styles which showcased Michaelle’s versatile percussive skills. Among the list of people Michaelle has played with: Wayne Wallace, Mark Levine, Proyecto Lando, the Pickpocket Ensemble, rhiannon, Barbara Higbie, Jami Sieber and Samba Rio.

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Annette Aguilar

Annette A. Aguilar

Annette A. Aguilar – multi-percussionist, recording artist,educator, producer and bandleader – was born in San Francisco into a family from Nicaragua. She began playing music at the age of eleven.

At sixteen, she was recognized for her percussion playing and began sitting in and performing with internationally renowned Latin artists such as members of the Santana Band, Cal Tjader, and Pete an Sheila Escovedo. She earned a Bachelor in Music from San Francisco State University, a Masters from Manhattan School of Music, and Masters in Music Education at CUNY. She has worked on Grammy Award-winning Broadway shows and currently serves as principal timpanist for the Bronx Symphony.

In 1992, she formed her Latin and Brazilian jazz group, Annette A. Aguilar & StringBeans. StringBeans soon became a popular fixture of the New York City’s East Village and Lower East Side music scene. A three-time selection as Latin Jazz Ambassadors by the U.S. State Department, the Kennedy Center and Jazz at Lincoln Center, the group has toured South Africa, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar, sharing their knowledge of music from the Americans and the Caribbean.

Their debut CD on their own label, Special Friends, and second CD, No Cheap Dates, received numerous reviews nationally and abroad. They will release their third CD, The Day Waits for Nobody in Spring 2009 in time for their return concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

For more information, see Annette’s website.

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Class Descriptions: Afia Walking Tree

1) Advanced Djembe Fevah™ – West African Djembe*
*Course Prerequisite: This course is for Intermediate and Advanced students only.

Djembe has so many dynamic parts to playing like a pro! Excel in your Djembe playing with body postures (sitting and standing), rhythm placement, introductions, accompaniments, and “Soulos.” Fine-tune specific hand techniques, rolls, flams and ambidextrous playing. Practice drumming techniques for dance classes and develop endurance, focus, intensity, sensitivity, posturing, dynamics, speed and expressive passion. Explore the lineage and role of the Djembe within the context of our culture, the orchestra, the dance, and in relation to the Dunun as we play traditional rhythms from Guinea and contemporary “Walking Tree” rhythms. Revitalize and connect to the power of drumming as we break through fears of playing from our authentic selves within the safety and collective holding of our community. Bring a strap if you are able to wear your Djembe. We will also quickly tune drums that are out of tune as well.

2) All Level Dunun Orchestra
Dununs carry the heartbeat of West African rhythms. Their dynamic tones from Dununbah, Sangbah, and Kenkeni with corresponding bells, carry so much magic. Learn how to sing and dance with your Dunun. Learn ballet and village styles of playing, improve your technique while playing in a chorus of three dunun parts. Explore the lineage and role of the Dunun within the context of West African culture, the drum orchestra, the dance, and in relation to the Djembe as we play traditional rhythms from Guinea and contemporary “Walking Tree” rhythms. Bring a Dunun or a conga to play with sticks.

3) Gourd Song Shekere
All levels welcome. 10-15 naked gourd and shekeres available on a first come, first served basis.

At 24years old, when I received Shekere as a birthday gift, I began playing instinctually and never stopped! Since then, I have played Shekere in bands, ensembles, dance classes and has taught the making and playing of it. Over the years I designed a technique of playing and teaching Shekere that allows for easy integration of this very complex instrument, and have hand-crafted over 300 Walking Tree brand shekeres for musicians all over the world. Learn the basic rhythmic technique of this exquisite uplifting instrument, sing and play shekere-lingo, and practice top and bottom-hand techniques that are essential to mastering Shekere. The Shekere is a wonderful accompaniment instrument that is a great skill for budding musical enthusiasts to have in your repertoire, and for those who have already mastered other drums. Join us for this exciting gourd song feast!

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Author Archive

Samba at Drum Sundays ~ with Michaelle Goerlitz

Linda Tillery

Carolyn Brandy

Documents for Camp

Marketplace

Class Schedule

Raffle

Luisah Teish

Registration

Born to Drum 2011 Photos

Afia Walking Tree

Michaelle Goerlitz

Annette Aguilar

Class Descriptions: Afia Walking Tree

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